Semiconductor Devices and Methods of Manufacture Thereof

ABSTRACT

Semiconductor devices and methods of manufacture thereof are disclosed. In one embodiment, a capacitor plate includes a plurality of first parallel conductive members, and a plurality of second parallel conductive members disposed over the plurality of first parallel conductive members. A first base member is coupled to an end of the plurality of first parallel conductive members, and a second base member is coupled to an end of the plurality of second parallel conductive members. A connecting member is disposed between the plurality of first parallel conductive members and the plurality of second parallel conductive members, wherein the connecting member includes at least one elongated via.

This is a divisional application of U.S. application Ser. No.11/947,591, entitled “Semiconductor Devices and Methods of ManufactureThereof,” which was filed on Nov. 29, 2007, and is hereby incorporatedherein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to the fabrication ofsemiconductor devices, and more particularly to the fabrication ofcapacitors in integrated circuits.

BACKGROUND

Semiconductor devices are used in a variety of electronic applications,such as personal computers, cell phones, digital cameras, and otherelectronic equipment, as examples. Semiconductor devices are typicallyfabricated by sequentially depositing insulating or dielectric layers,conductive layers, and semiconductive layers of material over asemiconductor substrate, and patterning the various layers usinglithography to form circuit components and elements thereon.

Capacitors are elements that are used in semiconductor devices forstoring an electrical charge. Capacitors essentially comprise twoconductive plates separated by an insulating material. When an electriccurrent is applied to a capacitor, electric charges of equal magnitudeyet opposite polarity build up on the capacitor plates. The capacitance,or the amount of charge held by the capacitor per applied voltage,depends on a number of parameters, such as the area of the plates, thedistance between the plates, and the dielectric constant value of theinsulating material between the plates, as examples. Capacitors are usedin applications such as electronic filters, analog-to-digitalconverters, memory devices, control applications, and many other typesof semiconductor device applications.

What are needed in the art are improved methods of fabricatingcapacitors in semiconductor devices and structures thereof.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Technical advantages are generally achieved by embodiments of thepresent invention, which provide novel methods of manufacturingcapacitor plates, capacitors, semiconductor devices, and structuresthereof.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a capacitorplate includes a plurality of first parallel conductive members, and aplurality of second parallel conductive members disposed over theplurality of first parallel conductive members. A first base member iscoupled to an end of the plurality of first parallel conductive members.A second base member is coupled to an end of the plurality of secondparallel conductive members. A connecting member is disposed between theplurality of first parallel conductive members and the plurality ofsecond parallel conductive members, wherein the connecting membercomprises at least one elongated via.

The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technicaladvantages of embodiments of the present invention in order that thedetailed description of the invention that follows may be betterunderstood. Additional features and advantages of embodiments of theinvention will be described hereinafter, which form the subject of theclaims of the invention. It should be appreciated by those skilled inthe art that the conception and specific embodiments disclosed may bereadily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structuresor processes for carrying out the same purposes of the presentinvention. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art thatsuch equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope ofthe invention as set forth in the appended claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, and theadvantages thereof, reference is now made to the following descriptionstaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention, wherein acapacitor plate includes a connecting member comprising a plurality ofelongated vias disposed between first and second parallel conductivemembers of the capacitor plate;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the semiconductor device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 illustrates a top view of a lithography mask for the conductivematerial layer comprising the plurality of elongated vias shown in FIG.1;

FIG. 4 shows a more detailed cross-sectional view of a conductivematerial layer comprising the plurality of elongated vias shown in FIG.1;

FIG. 5 is a top view of a capacitor comprising two capacitor plates thateach have connecting members comprising a plurality of elongated viasdisposed between first and second parallel conductive members inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 shows a top view of a capacitor comprising two capacitor platesthat have connecting members comprising a single elongated via disposedbetween first and second parallel conductive members in accordance withanother embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 7, 8, and 9 illustrate cross-sectional views of the capacitorshown in FIG. 6 at various stages of manufacturing;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of the capacitor shown in FIG. 6 in adirection perpendicular to the view shown in FIGS. 7 through 9;

FIG. 11 shows a top view of a capacitor in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present invention, wherein the connecting members andthe second parallel conductive members of the capacitor plates areformed using the same lithography mask;

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 11 ina direction perpendicular to the view shown in FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 shows a top view of a capacitor in accordance with yet anotherembodiment of the present invention, wherein the connecting memberfurther includes a base member; and

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 14.

Corresponding numerals and symbols in the different figures generallyrefer to corresponding parts unless otherwise indicated. The figures aredrawn to clearly illustrate the relevant aspects of the embodiments andare not necessarily drawn to scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

The making and using of the presently preferred embodiments arediscussed in detail below. It should be appreciated, however, that thepresent invention provides many applicable inventive concepts that canbe embodied in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specificembodiments discussed are merely illustrative of specific ways to makeand use the invention, and do not limit the scope of the invention.

The present invention will be described with respect to preferredembodiments in specific contexts, namely implemented in CMOS deviceapplications. Embodiments of the invention may also be implemented inother semiconductor applications such as memory devices, logic devices,analog devices, power devices, radio frequency (RF) devices, digitaldevices, and other applications that utilize capacitors, for example.

Some properties of capacitors are a function of size. A larger amount ofenergy or charge may be stored by a capacitor the larger the capacitorplates are, for example. In some semiconductor device applications, itis desirable to increase the capacitance of capacitors, but area on theintegrated circuit is often limited. Thus, what are needed in the artare improved methods of manufacturing capacitors and structures thereofthat more efficiently use the area of the integrated circuit.

One type of capacitor used in semiconductor devices is referred to as ametal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitor, which has capacitor plates formedparallel to a horizontal surface of a wafer, and a dielectric materialformed between the capacitor plates. Another type of capacitor used insemiconductors is a vertical parallel plate (VPP) capacitor, whereinconductive lines are formed in stacks and are connected together byvias. The stacked conductive lines and vias function as a verticalcapacitor plate and are separated by an adjacent vertical capacitorplate by a dielectric material to form a capacitor.

Some vertical parallel plate capacitors suffer from reduced reliabilitydue to misalignment in the lithography processes used to form the viasbetween the stacked conductive lines, which results in high electricalfields proximate the conductive lines. The high electrical fields maycause early dielectric breakdown, e.g., in reliability tests. In somemetallization schemes that utilize copper as a material for theconductive lines and vias, which has a high mobility and tends todiffuse into some dielectric materials, liners are used to preventcopper diffusion. However, vias of conventional vertical parallel platecapacitors comprise a minimum feature size for the semiconductor device,and due to the small size of the vias, liners formed within the vias maybe thin or incompletely formed, resulting in leakage current between thevias of the vertical capacitor plates, which further degrades thereliability of the capacitors.

These and other problems are generally solved or circumvented, andtechnical advantages are generally achieved, by embodiments of thepresent invention, which comprise novel vertical parallel platecapacitor structures that are formed in multiple conductive layers ofsemiconductor devices. The capacitor plates of the capacitors compriseconnecting members that include at least one elongated via, whichimproves reliability of the capacitors and increases capacitancedensity.

FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device 100 inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention, wherein acapacitor plate 110 includes a connecting member 120 comprising aplurality of elongated vias 122 disposed between adjacent first parallelconductive members 112 and second parallel conductive members 114 of thecapacitor plate 110. The capacitor plate 110 comprises a plurality offirst parallel conductive members 112 and a plurality of second parallelconductive members 114, as shown in a top view in FIG. 2. Each of theplurality of second parallel conductive members 114 is disposed over anunderlying first parallel conductive member 112. At least some of theplurality of first parallel conductive members 112 are coupled togetherby a first base member 116, and at least some of the plurality of secondparallel conductive members 114 are coupled together by a second basemember 118. One or more of the plurality of first parallel conductivemembers 112 and second parallel conductive members 114 may be formedthat are not connected to the base members 116 and 118, respectively, inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention, to be described furtherherein.

The first parallel conductive member 112, the first base member 116, theconnecting member 120, the second parallel conductive member 114, andthe second base member 118 form a capacitor plate 110 of a capacitor inaccordance with embodiments of the present invention. Two capacitorplates 110 a and 110 b may be formed proximate one another withininsulating materials 124 a, 124 b, and 124 c, forming a capacitor 160 inaccordance with embodiments of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 5in a top view. Portions of the insulating materials 124 a, 124 b, and124 c disposed between the plates 110 a and 110 b function as acapacitor dielectric.

The capacitor plate 110 is formed over a workpiece 102 within aplurality of conductive material layers M₁, V₁, and M₂, as shown inFIG. 1. The workpiece 102 may include a semiconductor substratecomprising silicon or other semiconductor materials covered by aninsulating layer, for example. The workpiece 102 may also include otheractive components or circuits, not shown. The workpiece 102 may comprisesilicon oxide over single-crystal silicon, for example. The workpiece102 may include other conductive layers or other semiconductor elements,e.g., transistors, diodes, etc., not shown. Compound semiconductors,GaAs, InP, Si/Ge, or SiC, as examples, may be used in place of silicon.The workpiece 102 may comprise a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) substrate,for example.

The workpiece 102 comprises a first region 104 and a second region 106,as shown. The first region 104 is also referred to herein as a capacitorregion, and the second region 106 is also referred to herein as aconductive line region, for example. A vertical parallel plate capacitoris formed in the first region 104, and a plurality of conductive linesand vias that may be used for interconnecting other elements of thesemiconductor device 100 are formed in the second region 106, to bedescribed further herein.

A first conductive material layer M₁ is formed over the workpiece 102.The first conductive material layer M₁ may comprise a metallizationlayer for conductive lines 112′ in the conductive line region 106 of thesemiconductor device 100, for example. To form the first conductivematerial layer M₁, a damascene process may be used. A first insulatingmaterial 124 a is formed over the workpiece 102. The first insulatingmaterial 124 a may comprise about 1,000 to 4,000 Angstroms, or about5,000 Angstroms or less, of an oxide such as SiO₂, a nitride such asSi₃N₄, a low-k dielectric material having a dielectric constant lessthan about 3.9, a capping layer, a liner, an etch stop layer, orcombinations and multiple layers thereof, as examples. Alternatively,the first insulating material 124 a may comprise other dimensions andmaterials, for example. The first insulating material 124 a may beformed using chemical vapor deposition (CVD), atomic layer deposition(ALD), metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), physical vapordeposition (PVD), a spin-on process, or jet vapor deposition (JVD), asexamples, although alternatively, other methods may also be used.

The first insulating material 124 a is patterned with a pattern for aplurality of first parallel conductive members 112 in the first region104 and a pattern for conductive lines 112′ in the second region 106. Apattern for a first base member 116 is also formed in the firstinsulating material 124 a in the first region 104. The patterned firstinsulating material 124 a is filled with a conductive material to fillthe patterns, and excess conductive material is removed from the topsurface of the first insulating material 124 a, using an etch processand/or a chemical-mechanical polish (CMP) process, for example, leavingthe plurality of first parallel conductive members 112, the first basemember 116, and the conductive lines 112′ formed within the firstinsulating material 124 a. The conductive material may comprise one ormore conductive liners and a fill material formed over the liner, forexample. The liner(s) may comprise Ta, TaN, WN, WCN, Ru, Ti, TiN, TiSiN,other materials, or combinations thereof, and the fill material maycomprise Al, Cu, W, Ag, other metals, a semiconductive material, orcombinations thereof, as examples.

Alternatively, the first conductive material layer M₁ may be formedusing a subtractive etch process. For example, a conductive material112/112′ may be formed over the workpiece 102, and the conductivematerial 112/112′ may be subtractively etched to form the plurality offirst parallel conductive members 112 and first base member 116 in thefirst region 104 and the conductive lines 112′ in the second region 106.The first insulating material 124 a is then deposited between theplurality of first parallel conductive members 112, the first basemember 116, and the conductive lines 112′.

The first base member 116 is coupled to one end of each of the firstparallel conductive members 112. The first base member 116 electricallycouples together the plurality of first parallel conductive members 112,forming a comb or fork-shaped conductive feature 112/116 that is aportion of a capacitor plate 110, in accordance with embodiments of thepresent invention.

Next, a second conductive material layer V₁ is formed over the firstconductive material layer M₁. The second conductive material layer V₁comprises a via layer or a via level in a multi-layer interconnect ofthe semiconductor device 100. A single or dual damascene process (e.g.,in which second parallel conductive members 114 are also formed) may beused to form the second conductive material layer V₁, for example.Alternatively, a subtractive etch process may be used.

For example, in a single damascene process, a second insulating material124 b is formed over the first conductive material layer M₁. The secondinsulating material 124 b may comprise similar materials and dimensionsand may be formed using similar methods as described for the firstinsulating material 124 a, for example. The second insulating material124 b is patterned with a pattern for a connecting member 120 over eachof the plurality of first parallel conductive members 112 in the firstregion 104. The connecting members 120 comprise at least one elongatedvia 122. A pattern for a plurality of vias 122′ is also formed in thesecond region 106 using the same lithography mask and process for theconnecting members 120. The patterned second insulating material 124 bis filled with a conductive material to fill the patterns, and excessconductive material is removed from the top surface of the secondinsulating material 124 b using a CMP and/or etch process. A conductiveliner may be formed over the patterned second insulating material 124 bbefore filling the patterns for the connecting members 120 and the vias122′, to be described further herein. The conductive material maycomprise the same materials as described for the first conductivematerial layer M₁, for example.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the connecting members 120comprise a plurality of elongated vias 122. The elongated vias 122comprise a width comprising dimension d₁ and a length comprisingdimension d₂, wherein dimension d₂ is greater than dimension d₁. Theconnecting members may comprise a width d₁ comprising the same dimensionas vias 122′ formed in the second region 106, for example. Vias 122′formed in the second region 106 comprise a width and length comprisingdimension d₁. Dimension d₁ may comprise a minimum feature size of thesemiconductor device 100, for example. Dimension d₁ may comprise about50 to 70 nm, for example, although alternatively, dimension d₁ maycomprise other dimensions.

Dimension d₂ is about twice dimension d₁ in some embodiments, althoughalternatively, dimension d₂ may be greater than twice dimension d₁, forexample. The elongated vias 122 may be spaced apart by dimension d₁, insome embodiments. The vias 122′ may be circular in shape due to thelithography and etch processes, and the elongated vias 122 may be oval,even though patterns in the lithography mask (such as the mask 130 shownin FIG. 3) used to pattern the vias 122′ and elongated vias 122 may besquare and rectangular, respectively, not shown in the drawings.Furthermore, the vias 122′ and elongated vias 122 may be taperedinwardly, e.g., from a top surface of the semiconductor device 100,having a larger dimension near the top of the second insulating material124 b than at the bottom due to the etch process, also not shown (seeFIG. 10).

A third conductive material layer M₂ is formed over the secondconductive material layer V₁. The third conductive material layer M₂ maycomprise a metallization layer for conductive lines 114′ in theconductive line region 106 of the semiconductor device 100, for example.To form the third conductive material layer M₂, a damascene process maybe used. A third insulating material 124 c is formed over the secondinsulating material 124 b. The third insulating material 124 c maycomprise similar materials and dimensions as described for the firstinsulating material 124 a, for example. The third insulating material124 c is patterned with a pattern for a plurality of second parallelconductive members 114 in the first region 104 and a pattern forconductive lines 114′ in the second region 106. A pattern for a secondbase member 118 is also formed in the third insulating material 124 c.The patterned third insulating material 124 c is filled with aconductive material to fill the patterns, and excess conductive materialis removed from the top surface of the third insulating material 124 c,using a CMP and/or etch process. Alternatively, the third conductivematerial layer M₂ may be formed using a subtractive etch process.

The second conductive material layer V₁ and the third conductivematerial layer M₂ may also be formed using a dual damascene process,wherein a single insulating material layer 124 b/124 c is formed overthe first insulating material 124 a. A first lithography mask is used topattern the elongated vias 122 and vias 122′, and a second lithographymask is used to pattern the second parallel conductive members 114 andbase members 118. The patterns in the insulating material 124 b/124 care then filled simultaneously with a conductive material.

The second base member 118 is coupled to one end of each of the secondparallel conductive members 114, as shown in a top view in FIG. 2. Thesecond base member 118 electrically couples together the plurality ofsecond parallel conductive members 114, forming a comb or fork-shapedconductive feature 114/118 that comprises a portion of a capacitor plate110. The fork-shaped conductive feature 114/118 may comprisesubstantially the same dimensions as the fork-shaped conductive feature112/116 formed in the first conductive material layer M₁. Thefork-shaped feature 114/118 is disposed over the fork-shaped feature112/116 formed in the first conductive material layer M₁.

The elongated vias 122 of the connecting members 120 are shown inphantom in the top view shown in FIG. 2. The first and second parallelconductive members 112 and 114 comprise a width comprising dimension d₁and a length comprising d₃. A top view of the conductive lines 114′ isshown in the second region 106, with the vias 122′ comprising dimensiond₁ shown in phantom, disposed beneath the conductive lines 114′. Onlytwo second parallel conductive members 114 are shown in FIG. 2;alternatively, the capacitor plate 110 may include a plurality of firstand second parallel conductive members 114, e.g., three or more,depending on the capacitance desired.

The metallization or conductive material layers M₁, V₁, and/or M₂ maycomprise conductive material layers disposed at various locations of thesemiconductor device 100. For example, layer M₁ may comprise a firstmetallization layer, e.g., the first layer formed in a back-end-of theline (BEOL) process. Or, layer M₁ may comprise a second or greatermetallization layer, disposed above and over previously formedmetallization layers, not shown. Alternatively, layers M₁, V₁, and/or M₂may comprise conductive material layers formed in a front-end-of theline (FEOL) process, for example.

Thus, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, acapacitor plate 110 includes a plurality of first parallel conductivemembers 112 and a plurality of second parallel conductive members 114disposed over the plurality of first parallel conductive members 112. Afirst base member 116 is coupled to an end of the plurality of firstparallel conductive members 112, the first base member 116 electricallycoupling the plurality of first parallel conductive members 112together. A second base member 118 is coupled to an end of the pluralityof second parallel conductive members 114, the second base member 118electrically coupling the plurality of second parallel conductivemembers 114 together. A connecting member 120 is disposed between theplurality of first parallel conductive members 112 and the plurality ofsecond parallel conductive members 114, wherein the connecting member120 comprises at least one elongated via 122.

Only one capacitor plate 110 is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The firstparallel conductive member 112, the first base member 116, theconnecting member 120, the second parallel conductive member 114, andthe second base member 118 form a capacitor plate 110 of a capacitor inaccordance with embodiments of the present invention. Two capacitorplates 110 a and 110 b may be formed proximate one another within theinsulating materials 124 a, 124 b, and 124 c, forming a capacitor 160,in accordance with embodiments of the present invention, as shown inFIG. 5 in a top view. Portions of the insulating materials 124 a, 124 b,and 124 c function as a capacitor dielectric in these embodiments.

In accordance with embodiments of the present invention, two capacitorplates 110 are placed adjacent one another, wherein the first and secondparallel conductive members 112 and 114 are staggered and interleaved orinterwoven between each plate 110, as shown in FIG. 5 in a top view, tobe described further herein. The novel connecting members 120 compriseelongated vias that are disposed between and coupled to adjacent firstand second parallel conductive members 112 and 114. Additionalmetallization layers and conductive material layers may be used abovethe second parallel conductive members 114 or below the first parallelconductive members 112, and multiple stacked layers of connectingmembers 120 comprising elongated vias 122 may be used to connect toadditional parallel conductive members 112 or 114.

In semiconductor device manufacturing, via levels of multi-layerinterconnect systems are generally optimized for processing a singlesize of via. It is difficult to process small features, particularly indense arrays, and lithography and etch processes for vias can bechallenging. For example, all vias within a via level for conventionalsemiconductor devices typically comprise the same size, so that the etchprocess, lithography, and exposure processes may be optimized. However,in accordance with embodiments of the present invention, elongated vias122 are used in the capacitor region 104 of a semiconductor device 100.Optical proximity correction (OPC) of the lithography mask used topattern the semiconductor device 100 may be modified in accordance withembodiments of the present invention to achieve the desired size of theelongated vias 122, for example, because large features print at adifferent size and etch at different etch rates than small features.

FIG. 3 shows a top view of a lithography mask 130 for the conductivematerial layer V₁ comprising the plurality of elongated vias 122 in thefirst region 104 and vias 122′ in the second region 106 shown in FIG. 1.Region 134 of the mask 130 corresponds with and is used to pattern thefirst region 104 of FIGS. 1 and 2, and region 136 of the mask 130corresponds with and is used to pattern the second region 106 of FIGS. 1and 2.

The lithography mask 130 comprises an opaque material 138 and aplurality of apertures 140 comprising patterns within the opaquematerial 138. The lithography mask 130 is used in a lithography process(e.g., by exposure to light or energy) to pattern a layer ofphotosensitive material formed over the workpiece 102, the layer ofphotosensitive material is developed, and the layer of photosensitivematerial is used as a mask to pattern a material layers, such as thesecond insulating layer 124 b of the via layer V₁ in a damasceneprocess.

Patterns 142 for the elongated vias 122 in the first region 134 comprisea width or dimension d₄ corresponding to dimension d₁ of FIG. 2, and alength or dimension d₅ corresponding to dimension d₃ of FIG. 2. Thepatterns 144 for the vias 122′ in region 136 comprise a dimension d₁that corresponds to dimension d₁ of vias 122′ of FIG. 2. Because largerfeatures print larger during lithography and are etched more quickly insome etch processes that smaller features are etched, the patterns 142for the elongated vias 122 in region 134 may be made smaller on thelithography mask 130 to accommodate for the different print sizes andetch rates in the lithography and etch process. The patterns 144 of thelithography mask 130 comprise a greater width, e.g., dimension d₁ in avertical direction, and smaller length, e.g., dimension d₁ in ahorizontal direction in the conductive line region 136 than in thecapacitor region 134, e.g., compared to the width d₄ and length d₅ ofthe patterns 142 in the capacitor region 134. For example, on thelithography mask 130, the width of elongated vias of the patterns 142 ordimension d₄ may be made smaller by about 5 to 20% than dimension d₁ ofthe minimum square vias of pattern 144. Alternatively, the size of thepatterns 142 may be altered by other amounts to compensate for thedesired size difference of the elongated vias 122 compared to the vias122′. Note that the dimensions of the mask 130 may not be the same asdimensions on the semiconductor device 100 due to a reduction factor ofthe lithography system used, which may have a reduction factor of about2:1 or 4:1, as examples.

The mask 130 shown in FIG. 3 having adjusted dimensions d₄ and d₅ forthe elongated via patterns 142 may be used to pattern the semiconductordevice 100 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and also FIG. 5. Similar adjustmentsto patterns 142 for elongated vias may also be made to lithography masksfor the other embodiments to be described herein, for example.

FIG. 4 shows a more detailed cross-sectional view of a conductivematerial layer V₁ comprising the plurality of elongated vias 122 shownin FIG. 1. A sputter process may be used to form a liner 146 comprisinga conductive material, although other deposition processes may also beused. Smaller vias 122′ formed in the second region 106 may have regions150 located proximate the bottom surface along the sidewalls where theliner 146 does not form or is very thin. A thin or missing liner may notbe problematic in the conductive line or second region 106 in someapplications, but thin or missing liners 146 are likely to cause leakagecurrent if small vias 122′ are used in the capacitor region 104, forexample. Advantageously, because the vias 122 in the capacitor or firstregion 104 are elongated and comprise a length or dimension d₂ that islarger than dimension d₁, the liner 146 is thicker on the bottomsurface, e.g., having dimension d₆ comprising about 5 to 50 nm, whereasthe liner 146 is thinner on the bottom surface of the vias 122′ in thesecond region 106, as shown at dimension d₇. Also, the liner 146advantageously is formed over the entire sidewall of the largerelongated vias 122 in the first region 104, because the openings for theelongated vias 122 are wider at the top, resulting in improved,continuous, liner coverage during the deposition process. The liner 146of the elongated vias 122 may have a dimension d₈ along a lower portionof the sidewall of about 1 to 20 nm, for example. Alternatively, theliner 146 may comprise other dimensions.

A conductive fill material 148 is then formed over the liner 146, alsoshown in FIG. 4. If the conductive fill material 148 comprises copper,then the liner may comprise Ta, TaN, WN, WCN or Ru, as examples. If theconductive fill material 148 comprises aluminum, the liner may compriseTi, TiN, or TiSiN, as examples. Alternatively, the liner 146 and fillmaterial 148 may comprise other materials. The fill material 148 maycomprise a semiconductive material such as polysilicon or amorphoussilicon, and a liner may not be included, for example.

Advantageously, because the vias 122 of the connecting member 120 of thecapacitor plate 110 are elongated, the liner 146 is fully formed overthe sidewalls and bottom surface of the patterns for the elongated vias122, resulting in decreased leakage current for capacitors formed fromthe capacitor plates 110, in accordance with embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 5 shows a top view of a capacitor 160 formed in a capacitor region104, wherein the capacitor 160 comprises two capacitor plates 110 a and110 b that each have connecting members 120 comprising a plurality ofelongated vias 122 (shown in phantom) disposed between first and secondparallel conductive members 112 and 114 in accordance with an embodimentof the present invention. Only the second parallel conductive members114 and base members 118 are visible in the top view shown in FIG. 5. Aplurality of first parallel conductive members 112 and first basemembers 116 are disposed immediately beneath, (e.g., parallel andadjacent to or proximate) the plurality of second parallel conductivemembers 114 and the second base members 118.

The second parallel conductive members 114 of the first plate 110 a areinterwoven or interleaved with the second parallel conductive members114 of the second plate 110 a. Likewise, the first parallel conductivemembers 112 of the first plate 110 a are interwoven or interleaved withthe first parallel conductive members 112 of the second plate 110 a. Theelongated vias 112 may be spaced apart by a distance or dimension d₁,which may comprise a minimum feature size of the semiconductor device100, for example. The elongated vias 112 may be spaced apart by adistance d₁ comprising substantially the same as the width of theelongated vias 112, for example, in some embodiments.

The connecting members 120 comprise an array of rectangular elongatedvias 122 in this embodiment. The elongated vias 122 coupled between thesecond parallel conductive members 114 and the first parallel conductivemembers 112 of the first plate 110 a are parallel to adjacent elongatedvias 122 coupled between the second parallel conductive members 114 andthe first parallel conductive members 112 of the second plate 110 b. Theinsulating material 124 a, 124 b, and 124 c between the first plate 110a and the second plate 110 b comprises the capacitor dielectric of thecapacitor 160. The interleaved comb structure of the interwoven firstand second parallel conductive members 112 and 114 and the elongatedvias 122 of the first and second plates 110 a and 110 b results in ahigh level of capacitance. The adjacent parallel elongated vias 122advantageously increase the capacitance density per area of the novelcapacitor 160.

The first parallel conductive members 112 and the second parallelconductive members 114 of the first capacitor plate 110 a are interwovenwith the first parallel conductive members 112 and the second parallelconductive members 114 of the second capacitor plate 110 b. The firstparallel conductive members 112 and the second parallel conductivemembers 114 of the first capacitor plate 110 a comprise alternatingfingers of conductive material. For example, one first parallelconductive member 112 of the first capacitor plate 110 a is disposedbetween two of the first parallel conductive members 112 of the secondcapacitor plate 110 b within the same conductive material layer M₁.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the first andsecond parallel conductive members 112 and 114 of the capacitor plates110 a and 110 b comprise members having widths that substantiallycomprise a minimum feature size of the semiconductor device 100. Thefirst and second parallel conductive members 112 and 114 of the firstcapacitor plate 110 a may also be spaced apart from the first and secondparallel conductive members 112 and 114 of the second plate 110 b by adimension d₁ that is substantially equal to the minimum feature size ofthe semiconductor device 100, for example.

The first and second parallel conductive members 112 and 114 of thecapacitor plates 110 a and 110 b comprise the same length in accordancewith some embodiments of the present invention. For example, the firstand second parallel conductive members 112 and 114 of the firstcapacitor plate 110 a may comprise a first length, and the first andsecond parallel conductive members 112 and 114 of the second capacitorplate 110 b may comprise a second length, the second length beingsubstantially the same as the first length. The first and second lengthsmay comprise about ten times or greater than the minimum feature size ofthe semiconductor device 100, as an example, although alternatively, thefirst and second lengths may comprise other dimensions.

The first and second parallel conductive members 112 and 114 of thefirst and second plates 110 a and 110 b are staggered, to leave spacefor the insulating materials 124 a, 124 b, and 124 c between the plates110 a and 110 b that form the capacitor dielectric. The dimensions ofthe first and second parallel conductive members 112 and 114 and theelongated vias 122, the space between them, and the type of dielectricmaterial (e.g., of insulating materials 124 a, 124 b, and 124 c) may beselected to achieve a desired capacitance, for example.

The capacitor plates 110 a and 110 b may be coupled to conductive lines(e.g., such as conductive lines 112′ and 114′ in the second region 106shown in FIGS. 1 and 2) to make electrical connection to other deviceson the semiconductor device 100, or to make connection with a contact orterminal of the semiconductor device 100. The capacitor plates 110 a and110 b may be symmetric, as shown in FIG. 5. The shapes of the capacitorplates 110 a and 110 b may comprise mirror images, as an example.

In other words, the semiconductor device 100 shown in FIG. 5 includes aworkpiece 102 and plurality of first parallel conductive members 112(see FIG. 1) disposed over the workpiece 102, the plurality of firstparallel conductive members 112 having a first end and a second endopposite the first end. Alternating first parallel conductive members112 are slightly staggered, e.g., in the horizontal direction in a viewsuch as the one shown in FIG. 5, to couple together alternating firstparallel conductive members 112 by a base member 116. A connectingmember 120 comprising at least one elongated via 122 is disposed overand coupled at least to each of the plurality of first parallelconductive members 112. A plurality of second parallel conductivemembers 114 is disposed over and coupled to the connecting members 120,the plurality of second parallel conductive members 114 having a firstend and a second end, the second end being opposite the first end.Alternating second parallel conductive members 114 are also slightlystaggered in the horizontal direction, to couple together alternatingfirst parallel conductive members 114 by a base member. A first basemember 116, e.g., of the first capacitor plate 110 a, is coupled to thefirst end of every other of the plurality of first parallel conductivemembers 112, the first base member 116 of the first capacitor plate 110a electrically coupling alternating plurality of first parallelconductive members 112 together. In the first conductive material layerM₁, a second base member 116, e.g., of the second capacitor plate 110 b,is coupled to the second end of the plurality of first parallelconductive members 112 not connected to the first base member 118, thesecond base member 116 of the second capacitor plate 110 b electricallycoupling alternating plurality of first parallel conductive members 112together. Similarly, in the third conductive material layer M₂, a thirdbase member 118, e.g., of the first capacitor plate 110 a, is coupled tothe first end of every other of the plurality of second parallelconductive members 114, the third base member 118 of the first capacitorplate 110 a electrically coupling alternating plurality of secondparallel conductive members 114 together. A fourth base member 118,e.g., of the second capacitor plate 110 b, is coupled to the second endof the plurality of second parallel conductive members 114 not connectedto the third base member 118 of the first capacitor plate 110 a, thefourth base member 118 of the second capacitor plate 110 b electricallycoupling alternating plurality of second parallel conductive members 114together.

Note that in the preceding paragraph, the first base members 116 arereferred to as a first base member 116 of the first capacitor plate 110a and a second base member 116 of the second capacitor plate 110 b.Similarly, the second base members 118 are referred to as a third basemember 118 of the first capacitor plate 110 a and a fourth base member118 of the second capacitor plate. In other portions of the detaileddescription, the base members of both capacitor plates 110 a and 110 bare referred to as first base members 116 and second base members 118,for example.

Note that in accordance with embodiments of the present invention, thebase members 116 and 118 may be coupled together using an optionaladditional connecting member 120″ that may comprise at least one via122″ that may be elongated or may comprise other dimensions, as shown inphantom in FIG. 5, to be described further herein.

In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, theconnecting members 220 may each comprise a single elongated via 222, asshown in FIG. 6. A top view of a capacitor 260 is shown, wherein thecapacitor 260 comprises two capacitor plates 210 a and 210 b thatinclude connecting members 220 comprising single elongated vias 222disposed between the second parallel conductive members 214 and thefirst parallel conductive members 212 (not shown in FIG. 6; see FIG. 9).FIGS. 7, 8, and 9 show cross-sectional views of the capacitor 160 shownin FIG. 6 at various stages of manufacturing. FIG. 10 shows across-sectional view of the capacitor 160 shown in FIG. 6 in a directionperpendicular to the view shown in FIGS. 7 through 9. Like numerals areused for the various elements in FIGS. 7 through 10 that were used todescribe FIGS. 1 through 5. To avoid repetition, each reference numbershown in FIGS. 6 through 10 is not described again in detail herein.Rather, similar materials and dimensions x02, x04, x06, etc. . . . arepreferably used for the various material layers shown as were describedfor FIGS. 1 through 5, where x=1 in FIGS. 1 through 5 and x=2 in FIGS. 6through 10.

To manufacture the semiconductor device 200, a workpiece 202 isprovided, and first parallel conductive members 212 and first basemembers 216 of the first and second capacitor plates 210 a and 210 b areformed within a first insulating material 224 a of a conductive materiallayer M₁, using a single damascene process. A dual damascene process maybe used to form the elongated vias 222 and the second parallelconductive members 214. A via-first process or a via-last dual damasceneprocess may be used.

For example, in a via-first process, a second insulating material 224 bmay be formed over the first conductive material layer M₁, and a thirdinsulating material 224 c may be formed over the second insulatingmaterial 224 b, as shown in FIG. 7. The second and third insulatingmaterials 224 b and 224 c may comprise a single insulating materiallayer, for example. A first layer of photoresist 262 may be depositedover the third insulating material 224 c, and the first layer ofphotoresist 262 may be patterned using a first lithography mask (notshown) and an exposure process with a pattern 264 for the elongatedvias. The first layer of photoresist 262 is developed, and the firstlayer of photoresist 262 is used as a mask during an etch process,removing portions of the second and third insulating material 224 b and224 c and forming the pattern 264 for the elongated vias 222 in thesecond and third insulating material 224 b and 224 c. The first layer ofphotoresist 262 is then removed.

A second layer of photoresist 266 is deposited over the patterned secondand third insulating material 224 b and 224 c, as shown in FIG. 8. Thesecond layer of photoresist 266 fills the patterns 264 in the second andthird insulating material 224 b and 224 c, for example. The second layerof photoresist 266 is patterned using a second lithography mask (notshown) and an exposure process with a pattern 268 for the secondparallel conductive members 214 and the second base members 218. Thesecond layer of photoresist 266 is developed, and the second layer ofphotoresist 266 is used as a mask during an etch process, removingportions of the third insulating material 224 c and forming the pattern268 for the second parallel conductive members 214 and the second basemembers 218 in the third insulating material 224 c. If the second andthird insulating material 224 b and 224 c comprise a single insulatingmaterial layer, only the top portion of the single insulating layer,represented by the third insulating material 224 c, is patterned withthe pattern 268 for the second parallel conductive members 214 and thesecond base members 218. The second layer of photoresist 266 is thenremoved.

Referring next to FIG. 9, a conductive material is then deposited overthe patterned second and third insulating material 224 b and 224 c,filling the patterns 264 and 268 and forming the elongated vias 222,second parallel conductive members 214, and the second base members 218in a single fill process. A liner (not shown) may also be used, as shownin FIG. 4. Excess conductive material is removed from the top surface274 of the third insulating material 224 c using an etch process and/orCMP process, so that the top surface 272 of the second parallelconductive members 214 and the second base members 218 is substantiallycoplanar with the top surface 274 of the third insulating material 224c, for example, as shown in phantom in FIG. 9.

FIG. 10 shows a cross-sectional view of the capacitor 260 shown in FIG.6 in a direction perpendicular to the view shown in FIGS. 7 through 9.The etch processes used to form the single elongated vias 222 and thesecond parallel conductive members 214 and the second base members 218may result in inwardly-tapered sidewalls of the vias 222 and members214, which can be seen in FIG. 10.

Due to misalignments between the lithography of via 222 and thelithography of the second parallel conductive members 214 the dimensiond₉ proximate the top of the elongated vias 222 and the second parallelconductive members 214 may be substantially smaller than the dimensiond₁₀ between the first parallel conductive members 212 of the first andsecond capacitor plates 210 a and 210 b. Dimension d₁₀ may comprise aminimum feature size of the semiconductor device 200, for example. Thelower portion of the elongated vias 222 and the second parallelconductive members 214 may comprise a width that is about 20 nm or lessthan the width at the top portion of the elongated vias 222 and thesecond parallel conductive members 214, for example.

The connecting members 220 may each comprise a single elongated via 222comprising at least a top portion having substantially the same size andshape as at least a top portion of the first and second parallelconductive members 212 and 214. The connecting members 220 may compriseat least a top portion comprising substantially the same length andwidth as a portion of the plurality of second parallel conductivemembers 214. For example, the connecting members 220 in FIG. 10 comprisea top portion comprising the same length and width as a top portion ofthe plurality of second parallel conductive members 214.

Alternatively, the single elongated vias 222 may be slightly smallerthan first and second parallel conductive members 212 and 214, forexample, e.g., by a few nm along the width and length. The second basemembers 218 may also have inwardly-tapered sidewalls, not shown. Thefirst base members 216 and the first parallel conductive members 212 mayalso have inwardly-tapered sidewalls, also not shown. The singleelongated vias 222 may have sidewalls that are substantiallyperpendicular to the horizontal surface of the workpiece 202, in someembodiments. The single elongated vias 222 may comprise a length that issubstantially the same as the length of the second parallel conductivemembers 214 in some embodiments, for example.

A via-last dual damascene method may also be used to form the capacitor260 shown in FIGS. 6 through 10. For example, patterns 268 for thesecond parallel conductive members 214 and the second base members 218may first be formed in the third insulating material 224 c, and then thepatterns 264 for the elongated vias 222 may be formed in the second andthird insulating materials 224 b and 224 c. Then a fill process is usedto fill the two patterns simultaneously with a conductive material.Alternatively, two single damascene processes or substractive etchprocesses may be used to form the second parallel conductive members214, the second base members 218, and the elongated vias, for example.

FIG. 11 shows a top view of a capacitor 360 in accordance with anotherembodiment of the present invention, wherein the connecting members 320and second parallel conductive members 314 of the capacitor plates areformed using the same lithography mask. FIG. 12 shows a cross-sectionalview of the embodiment shown in FIG. 11, and FIG. 13 shows across-sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 11 in a directionperpendicular to the view shown in FIG. 12. The connecting members 320each comprise a single elongated via 322 comprising substantially thesame size and shape as the second parallel conductive members 314.Again, like numerals are used to refer to the various elements that wereused to describe the previous figures, and to avoid repetition, eachreference number shown in FIGS. 11 through 13 is not described again indetail herein.

To manufacture the semiconductor device 300, a workpiece 302 isprovided, and the plurality of first parallel conductive members 312 andfirst base members 316 of the first and second capacitor plates 310 aand 310 b are formed within a first insulating material 324 a of aconductive material layer M₁, using a single damascene process. A dualdamascene process is then used to form the elongated vias 322, thesecond parallel conductive members 314, and the second base members 318of the first and second capacitor plates 310 a and 310 b. A via-firstprocess or a via-last dual damascene process may be used.

For example, in a via-first process, a second insulating material 324 bis formed over the first conductive material layer M₁, and a thirdinsulating material 324 c is formed over the second insulating material324 b, as shown in FIG. 12. The second and third insulating materials324 b and 324 c may comprise a single insulating material layer, forexample, as described for the embodiment shown in FIGS. 6 through 10. Afirst layer of photoresist (not shown) is deposited over the thirdinsulating material 324 c, and the first layer of photoresist ispatterned using a first lithography mask (not shown) and an exposureprocess with a pattern for the elongated vias 322 and the secondparallel conductive members 314. The first layer of photoresist isdeveloped, and the first layer of photoresist is used as a mask duringan etch process, removing portions of the second and third insulatingmaterial 324 b and 324 c and forming the pattern for the elongated vias322 and the second parallel conductive members 314 in the second andthird insulating material 324 b and 324 c. The first layer ofphotoresist is then removed.

A second layer of photoresist (also not shown) is deposited over thepatterned second and third insulating material 324 b and 324 c. Thesecond layer of photoresist fills the patterns in the second and thirdinsulating material 324 b and 324 c, for example. The second layer ofphotoresist is patterned using a second lithography mask (not shown) andan exposure process with a pattern for the second base members 318. Thesecond layer of photoresist is developed, and the second layer ofphotoresist is used as a mask during an etch process, removing portionsof the third insulating material 324 c and forming the pattern for thesecond base members 318 in the third insulating material 324 c. Thesecond layer of photoresist is then removed. The patterns for the secondparallel conductive members and elongated vias 322 intersect with thepatterns for the second base members 318.

A conductive material is then deposited over the patterned second andthird insulating material 324 b and 324 c, filling the patterns andforming the elongated vias 322, second parallel conductive members 314,and the second base members 318 in a single fill process. A liner (notshown) may also be used, as shown in FIG. 4. Excess conductive materialis removed from the top surface of the third insulating material 324 cusing an etch process and/or CMP process, so that the top surface of thesecond parallel conductive members 314 and the second base members 318is substantially coplanar with the top surface of the third insulatingmaterial 324 c.

The capacitor 360 shown in FIGS. 11 through 13 may also be formed in avia-last dual damascene process, for example, as described for theembodiment shown in FIGS. 6 through 10.

FIG. 13 shows a cross-sectional view of the capacitor 360 shown in FIG.11 in a direction perpendicular to the view shown in FIG. 12. The etchprocesses used to form the single elongated vias 322, the secondparallel conductive members 314, and the second base members 318 mayresult in inwardly-tapered sidewalls, as shown in FIG. 13. The dimensionbetween the top of the second parallel conductive members 314 may besubstantially the same as the dimension between the first parallelconductive members 312 of the first and second capacitor plates 310 aand 310 b. The lower portion of the elongated vias 322 may comprise asmaller width than the top portion of the second parallel conductivemembers 314, for example, as shown.

The connecting members 320 may comprise at least a top portioncomprising substantially the same length and width as a portion of theplurality of second parallel conductive members 314. For example, theconnecting members 320 in FIG. 13 comprise a top portion comprising thesame length and width as a lower portion of the plurality of secondparallel conductive members 314.

The embodiment of the present invention shown in FIGS. 11 through 13 isadvantageous because alignment of the elongated vias 322 to the secondparallel conductive members 314 is assured, due to the elongated vias322 and the second parallel conductive members 314 being formed usingthe same lithography mask. The connecting members 320 comprise elongatedvias 322 that have continuous sidewalls with the second parallelconductive members 314 disposed over the elongated vias 322. The secondparallel conductive members may comprise a top portion havingsubstantially the same size and shape as at least a top portion of thefirst parallel conductive members 312 in this embodiment.

FIG. 14 shows a top view of a capacitor 460 in accordance with yetanother embodiment of the present invention, wherein the connectingmember 420 further includes a base member 480 a coupled to the basemembers 416 and 418 a coupled to the first and second parallelconductive members 412 and 414 a. FIG. 15 shows a perspective view ofone capacitor plate 410 a of the embodiment shown in FIG. 14. Again,like numerals are used to refer to the various elements that were usedto describe the previous figures, and to avoid repetition, eachreference number shown in FIGS. 14 and 15 is not described again indetail herein.

The connecting members 420 a of the novel capacitor plates 410 a and 410b comprise elongated vias 422 a disposed between the first parallelconductive members 412 and the second parallel conductive members 414 a.The elongated vias 422 a extend substantially the entire length of thefirst and second parallel conductive members 412 and 414 a in thisembodiment, as shown. The connecting members 420 a also comprise a thirdbase member 480 a disposed between the first base member 416 and thesecond base member 418 a.

In this embodiment, a single mask is used to form the patterns for theconnecting members 420 a, the second parallel conductive members 414 a,and the second base members 418 a. Thus, advantageously, a lithographymask, lithography process, and an etch step may be eliminated inaccordance with this embodiment of the present invention. However, insome applications, a lithography mask may not be eliminated, because aseparate lithography mask may be required to form conductive lines in aconductive line region (e.g., the conductive lines 114′ in the secondregion 106 shown in FIG. 1.) Furthermore, in this embodiment, alignmentof the connecting members 420 a to the second parallel conductivemembers 418 a and the second base member 414 a is assured, because thesame lithography mask is used to pattern the connecting members 420 a,the second parallel conductive members 414 a, and the second base member418 a.

The sidewalls 482 a of the second base member 418 a, second parallelconductive members 414 a, the elongated vias 422 a, and the third basemembers 480 a may be continuously inwardly-tapered, as shown in phantomin the perspective view of FIG. 15. Alternatively, the sidewalls of thesecond base member 418 a, second parallel conductive members 414 a, theelongated vias 422 a, and the third base members 480 a may besubstantially perpendicular to the top surface of the workpiece 402, forexample.

Also shown in FIG. 15 are additional conductive material layers V₂ andM₃ that include additional connecting members 420 b comprising elongatedvias 422 b and additional base members 480 b formed in a fourthconductive material layer V₂ disposed over the conductive material layerM₂, and additional parallel conductive members 414 b and an additionalbase member 418 b formed in a fifth conductive material layer M₃ overthe elongated vias 422 b and third base member 480 b. The capacitorplate 410 a (and also capacitor plate 410 b shown in FIG. 14) may alsoinclude more than five conductive material layers M₁, V₁, M₂, V₂, M₃,with connecting members 420 a or 420 b including elongated vias 422 a or422 b (and also third base members 480 a or 480 b) and parallelconductive members 412, 414 a, or 414 b (and also base members 416, 418a, or 418 b) in alternating conductive material layers V_(x) or M_(x),not shown, which further increases the capacitance of the capacitor 460.Parallel conductive members 414 b may comprise third parallel conductivemembers 414 b disposed over the plurality of second parallel conductivemembers 414 a, and connecting members 420 b may comprise secondconnecting members comprising elongated vias 422 b that couple the thirdparallel conductive members 414 b to the second parallel conductivemembers 414 a, for example. The sidewalls 482 b of the base member 480b, parallel conductive members 414 b, elongated vias 422 b, and basemembers 418 b may be continuously inwardly-tapered, as shown in phantom,or the sidewalls may be substantially perpendicular to the workpiece 402top surface. There may be a plurality of third parallel conductivemembers 414 b and second connecting members 420 b included in capacitorplates 410 a and 410 b of a capacitor 460 in accordance with embodimentsof the present invention.

The other embodiments described herein may also include additionalconnecting members 120, 220, 320, 420 a, and 420 b and parallelconductive members 112, 212, 312, 412, 114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 bformed in additional conductive material layers V_(x) or M_(x) disposedover the second parallel conductive members 114, 214, 314, 414 b ordisposed under the first parallel conductive members 112, 212, 312, and412, for example, not shown in the drawings. The connecting members 120,220, 320, 420 a, and 420 b and parallel conductive members 112, 212,312, 412, 114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 b may be formed in multipleconductive material layers, or in every conductive material layer of asemiconductor device 100, 200, 300, and 400, for example.

Other embodiments may also include additional connecting members 120″comprising at least one via 122″ disposed between the base members 116and 118 for example, as shown in phantom in the top view of FIG. 5. Ifoptionally any additional conductive material levels are used to formcapacitors with more than two conductive levels, the respectiveadditional base members may also be connected by connecting members, forexample. Connecting members 120 may comprise first connecting members120, and connecting members 120″ may comprise second connecting members120″, for example. These additional optional connecting members 120″ ofthe respective base members 116 and 118 may comprise single elongatedvias (e.g., having a shape similar to vias 222 shown in FIG. 6, notshown in FIG. 5), or the connecting members 120″ may comprise an arrayof multiple vias 122″. The shape and size of these optional connectingmembers 120″ of the base members 116 and 118 may be about the same sizeand shape as the minimum dimension square or circular vias 122′ in thesecond region 106, for example. Alternatively, the connecting members120″ may comprise elongated vias 122″ comprising about the same shape aselongated vias 122 shown in FIG. 5, as another example. The additionaloptional connecting members 120″ may alternatively comprise other shapesor sizes, for example. The optional second connecting members 120″disposed between and connecting the base members 116 and 118 may also beincluded in the other embodiments described herein (not shown), forexample.

Referring again to FIG. 1, in some embodiments, the first base member116 may be coupled to an end of at least some, but not necessarily all,of the plurality of first parallel conductive members 112. Likewise, thesecond base member 118 may be coupled to an end of at least some, butnot necessarily all, of the plurality of second parallel conductivemembers 114, not shown. For example, one or more of the first parallelconductive members 112 may not be connected to a first base member 116,and one or more of the second parallel conductive members 114 may not beconnected to a second base member 118. Connecting members 120 comprisingelongated vias may be coupled to the first or second parallel conductivemembers 112 and 114 to overlying or underlying parallel conductivemembers to make electrical connection to the first or second parallelconductive members 112 and 114 not connected to a base member 116 or118, so that they comprise part of the capacitor plate 110 or capacitor160 (shown in FIG. 5), for example, in these embodiments.

Only one capacitor 160, 260, 360, and 460 is shown in the drawings;however, in accordance with some embodiments of the present invention, aplurality of capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 may be formed, e.g.,simultaneously, in the metallization layers M₁, V₁, and M₂, andoptionally, also within other metallization layers.

After the top-most material layer comprising the second parallelconductive members 114, 214, 314, and 414 b and the second base members118, 218, 318, and 418 b of the capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 isfabricated, the manufacturing process for the semiconductor devices 100,200, 300, and 400 is then continued to complete the fabrication process.For example, additional insulating material layers and conductivematerial layers may be formed over the novel capacitors 160, 260, 360,and 460 and may be used to interconnect the various components of thesemiconductor devices 100, 200, 300, and 400.

In the drawings, the ends of the first and second parallel conductivemembers 112, 212, 312, 412, 114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 b are shown asbeing substantially square; alternatively, due to the lithographyprocesses used to pattern the first and second parallel conductivemembers 112, 212, 312, 412, 114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 b, the ends ofthe first and second parallel conductive members 112, 212, 312, 412,114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 b may also be rounded or oval in a topview, for example, not shown.

Embodiments of the present invention include semiconductor devices 100,200, 300, and 400 and capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 having capacitorplates 110, 110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310 a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 bthat include connecting members 120, 220, 320, 420 a, and 420 b thatcomprise at least one elongated via 122, 222, 322, 422 a, and 422 b.Embodiments of the present invention also include methods of fabricatingthe semiconductor devices 100, 200, 300, and 400, capacitor plates 110,110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310 a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b, andcapacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 described herein, for example.

Advantages of embodiments of the present invention include providingnovel capacitor 160, 260, 360, and 460 designs and methods ofmanufacture thereof wherein the capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 havean improved or increased capacitance density per unit area. Because thenovel elongated vias 122, 222, 322, 422 a, and 422 b are elongated thatconnect the first and second parallel conductive members 112, 212, 312,412, 114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 b, more conductive material ispresent in the capacitor plates 110, 110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310 a,310 b, 410 a, and 410 b, increasing the capacitance of the capacitors160, 260, 360, and 460.

The vertical parallel plate capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 describedherein are optimized for improved reliability. Alignment problems ofvias to portions of capacitor plates 110, 110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b,310 a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b are reduced or eliminated in accordancewith embodiments of the present invention, resulting in reduced leakagecurrent and reduced electric fields. For example, improved alignment ofthe connecting members 120, 220, 320, 420 a, and 420 b to the first andsecond parallel conductive members 112, 212, 312, 412, 114, 214, 314,414 a, and 414 b is achieved by embodiments of the present invention.Furthermore, improved and thicker liner 146 formation is achieved of theconnecting members 120, 220, 320, 420 a, and 420 b, also reducing oreliminating leakage current between the capacitor plates 110, 110 a, 110b, 210 a, 210 b, 310 a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b.

Conductive lines and vias (e.g., in the first region 106 shown in FIGS.1 and 2) may be formed simultaneously with the formation of the novelcapacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 described herein, for example. Thus,additional etch processes and lithography processes may not be requiredto manufacture the novel capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 in accordancewith embodiments of the present invention. For example, the pattern forthe first parallel conductive members 112 and first base member 116 maybe included in an existing mask level for a metallization layer M₁. Asanother example, minimal sized vias 122′ in other regions such as region106 of FIGS. 1 and 2 may be patterned at the same time and using thesame mask 130 (FIG. 3) that is used to pattern the elongated vias 122,222, 322, 422 a, and 422 b of embodiments of the present invention.

The novel capacitor plates 110, 110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310 a, 310b, 410 a, and 410 b comprise three-dimensional capacitor 160, 260, 360,and 460 structures that are formed in multiple conductive materiallayers M₁, V₁, M₂, V₂, and M₃ of a semiconductor device 100, 200, 300,and 400. In some embodiments, the first and second parallel conductivemembers 112, 212, 312, 412, 114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 b andelongated vias 122, 222, 322, 422 a, and 422 b of the capacitor plates110, 110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310 a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b may beground-rule based, comprising a width of a minimum feature size of asemiconductor device 100, 200, 300, and 400, and achieving a highercapacitance value, for example.

One or more of the capacitor plates 110, 110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b described herein may be coupled together inseries or in parallel. For example, placing the capacitor plates 110,110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310 a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b in seriesreduces the overall capacitance of the capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460comprised of the capacitor plates 110, 110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b. Placing the capacitor plates 110, 110 a, 110b, 210 a, 210 b, 310 a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b in parallel increasesthe overall capacitance of the capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460comprised of the capacitor plates 110, 110 a, 110 b, 210 a, 210 b, 310a, 310 b, 410 a, and 410 b.

In some embodiments, the first and second parallel conductive members112, 212, 312, 412, 114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 b of the capacitors160, 260, 360, and 460 have substantially the same or similar dimensionsas other interconnect features or devices such as conductive lines 112′and 114′ formed in other regions 106 of the semiconductor devices 100,200, 300, or 400, so that the capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460 areeasily integratable into existing semiconductor device structures andmanufacturing process flows. The novel capacitors 160, 260, 360, and 460are low in complexity and cost. The properties of the capacitors 160,260, 360, and 460 may be tuned by adjusting the capacitor 160, 260, 360,and 460 dielectric material 124 a, 124 b, 124 c, 224 a, 224 b, 224 c,324 a, 324 b, or 324 c thickness and materials and by adjusting thedimensions of the first and second parallel conductive members 112, 212,312, 412, 114, 214, 314, 414 a, and 414 b and the novel elongated vias122, 222, 322, 422 a, and 422 b of the connecting members 120, 220, 320,420 a, and 420 b, for example.

Although embodiments of the present invention and their advantages havebeen described in detail, it should be understood that various changes,substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.For example, it will be readily understood by those skilled in the artthat many of the features, functions, processes, and materials describedherein may be varied while remaining within the scope of the presentinvention. Moreover, the scope of the present application is notintended to be limited to the particular embodiments of the process,machine, manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods and stepsdescribed in the specification. As one of ordinary skill in the art willreadily appreciate from the disclosure of the present invention,processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means,methods, or steps, presently existing or later to be developed, thatperform substantially the same function or achieve substantially thesame result as the corresponding embodiments described herein may beutilized according to the present invention. Accordingly, the appendedclaims are intended to include within their scope such processes,machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps.

1. A capacitor plate, comprising: a plurality of first parallelconductive members oriented in a first direction; a plurality of secondparallel conductive members disposed over the plurality of firstparallel conductive members; a first base member coupled to an end ofthe plurality of first parallel conductive members; a second base membercoupled to an end of the plurality of second parallel conductivemembers; and a plurality of elongated vias disposed between theplurality of first parallel conductive members and the plurality ofsecond parallel conductive members.
 2. The capacitor plate of claim 1,wherein each via of the plurality of elongated vias is spaced apart froman adjacent via of the plurality of elongated vias by a distancemeasured along the first direction, wherein the distance issubstantially the same as a width of each via of the plurality ofelongated vias.
 3. The capacitor plate of claim 1, further comprising athird base member disposed between the first base member and the secondbase member.
 4. The capacitor plate of claim 1, further comprising: asecond plurality of elongated vias disposed between the first basemember and the second base member.
 5. The capacitor plate of claim 1,wherein the first base member and the second first base member areoriented in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. 6.The capacitor plate of claim 1, wherein the length of each via of theplurality of elongated vias measured along the first direction is abouttwice a width of each via of the plurality of elongated vias measuredalong a second direction perpendicular to the first direction.
 7. Acapacitor comprising: a plurality of first parallel conductive membersoriented in a first direction; a plurality of second parallel conductivemembers oriented in the first direction and disposed over the pluralityof first parallel conductive members; a first base member coupled to anend of the plurality of first parallel conductive members and orientedin a second direction; a second base member coupled to an end of theplurality of second parallel conductive members, the second base memberoriented in the second direction; and a first plurality of elongatedvias disposed between each of the plurality of first parallel conductivemembers and each of the plurality of second parallel conductive members,wherein each via of the first plurality of elongated vias is spacedapart from an adjacent via of the first plurality of elongated vias by afirst distance measured along the first direction, wherein the firstdistance is substantially the same as a width of each via of the firstplurality of elongated vias, wherein the plurality of first parallelconductive members, the plurality of second parallel conductive members,the first base member, the second base member, and the first pluralityof elongated vias form part of a first plate of the capacitor.
 8. Thecapacitor of claim 7, wherein the length of each via of the firstplurality of elongated vias measured along the first direction is abouttwice the width of each via of the first plurality of elongated viasmeasured along the second direction.
 9. The capacitor of claim 7,further comprising a third base member disposed between the first basemember and the second base member.
 10. The capacitor of claim 7, furthercomprising: a second plurality of elongated vias oriented along thesecond direction disposed between the first base member and the secondbase member.
 11. The capacitor of claim 10, wherein the length of eachvia of the second plurality of elongated vias measured along the seconddirection is about twice a width of each via of the second plurality ofelongated vias measured along the first direction.
 12. The capacitor ofclaim 10, wherein each via of the second plurality of elongated vias isspaced apart from an adjacent via of the second plurality of elongatedvias by a second distance measured along the second direction, whereinthe second distance is substantially the same as a width of each via ofthe second plurality of elongated vias measured along the firstdirection.
 13. The capacitor of claim 7, wherein the first direction isperpendicular to the second direction.
 14. The capacitor of claim 7,further comprising: a plurality of third parallel conductive members; aplurality of fourth parallel conductive members disposed over theplurality of third parallel conductive members; a third base membercoupled to an end of the plurality of third parallel conductive members;a fourth base member coupled to an end of the plurality of fourthparallel conductive members; and a second plurality of elongated viasdisposed between each of the plurality of third parallel conductivemembers and each of the plurality of fourth parallel conductive members,wherein each via of the second plurality of elongated vias is spacedapart from an adjacent via of the second plurality of elongated vias bya second distance measured along the first direction, wherein the seconddistance is substantially the same as the width of each via of thesecond plurality of elongated vias, wherein the plurality of thirdparallel conductive members, the plurality of fourth parallel conductivemembers, the third base member, the fourth base member, and the secondplurality of elongated vias form part of a second plate of thecapacitor, wherein the first and the second plates form the capacitor.15. The capacitor of claim 14, wherein each via of the first pluralityof elongated vias overlaps with another via of the second plurality ofelongated vias along the second direction.
 16. A capacitor comprising:first parallel conductive members oriented in a first direction; secondparallel conductive members oriented in the first direction and disposedover the first parallel conductive members; a first base member coupledto an end of the first parallel conductive members and oriented in asecond direction perpendicular to the first direction; a second basemember coupled to an end of the second parallel conductive members andoriented in the second direction; a first plurality of elongated vias,wherein at least one via of the first plurality of elongated vias isdisposed between each of the first parallel conductive members and eachof the second parallel conductive members; and a first elongated viaoriented along the second direction, and disposed between the first basemember and the second base member, the first parallel conductivemembers, the second parallel conductive members, the first base member,the second base member, the first plurality of elongated vias, and thefirst elongated via forming part of a first plate of the capacitor. 17.The capacitor of claim 16, wherein the first elongated via comprises atop portion and a bottom portion, wherein the first elongated via iswider at the top portion than in the bottom portion, and wherein the topportion is adjacent the second base member relative to the bottomportion, wherein the at least one via of the first plurality ofelongated vias comprises a single elongated via disposed between thefirst parallel conductive members and the second parallel conductivemembers.
 18. The capacitor of claim 17, wherein the single elongated viacomprises a first length, wherein each of the second parallel connectingmembers comprise a second length, and wherein the second length issubstantially the same as the first length.
 19. The capacitor of claim16, further comprising: third parallel conductive members oriented inthe first direction; fourth parallel conductive members oriented in thefirst direction and disposed over the first parallel conductive members;a third base member coupled to an end of the third parallel conductivemembers and oriented in the second direction; a fourth base membercoupled to an end of the fourth parallel conductive members and orientedin the second direction; a second plurality of elongated vias, whereinat least one via of the second plurality of elongated vias is disposedbetween each of the third parallel conductive members and each of thefourth parallel conductive members; and a second elongated via orientedalong the second direction, and disposed between the third base memberand the fourth base member, the third parallel conductive members, thefourth parallel conductive members, the third base member, the fourthbase member, the second plurality of elongated vias, and the secondelongated via forming part of a second plate of the capacitor, the firstplate and the second plate forming the capacitor.
 20. The capacitor ofclaim 19, further comprising: a third elongated via oriented along thesecond direction and disposed between the first base member and thesecond base member.
 21. The capacitor of claim 16, wherein the length ofeach via of the first plurality of elongated vias measured along thefirst direction is about twice the width of each via of the firstplurality of elongated vias measured along the second direction.